Later, a team-mate became dehydrated and needed medical attention. The dog stood guard over him as they waited.

Near the end, the group realized they would have to leave Arthur behind on a river bank in order to fit in their kayaks. But Arthur dove into the water and swam alongside, until one team member lifted him aboard.

The team captain, Mikael Lindord, said: “He was kind of in the way during the whole paddle and we had to find different paddling techniques to not kick him off board. A few times he jumped into the water and took a swim, and then he crawled back up again and was freezing so he got to wear our jackets.”